16/17 Summer Transfers - Hit or Miss?

[Matt]

Still can't get my head around Burke out - Carayol, Lica and Dumitru in. While people will say Carayol is ok I would like bring up his injury record. Just basically bodies in the squad.

Has it not been said that those 3 were already being brought in to play alongside Burke before he was sold, not as replacements?

We actually don't play with wingers now either, which would suggest that the plan has been well and truly been torn up since the sale of young Oliver.

 

[BryanRoy]

Has it not been said that those 3 were already being brought in to play alongside Burke before he was sold, not as replacements?

We actually don't play with wingers now either, which would suggest that the plan has been well and truly been torn up since the sale of young Oliver.

Not all of them and questionable to think any of these 3 will make a major impact for us.

I think during the whole of pre-season , Montanier was formulating his plans and in the end after he scored 4 in pre-season (majority of our goals) he knew who he had to base his team around and it was him and then he continued it into the season proper and after Leeds we looked a major threat for promotion. Then he gets sold days before the window when Philippe believed he wouldn't be and probably was planning 1 more addition to add depth to wide areas.

Montanier was then back stabbed and with subsequent injuries to Britt/Bendtner and in that time we continued playing Osborn and Carayol/Dumitru out wide and it just didn't work. I also think the outlet of Burke worried any team trying to play front foot football on us because in seconds they would be turned over so we had more space from the back and in midfield.

Philippe was forced to come up with the a new source of goals and strengths to the squad and I think they believe they have found it. 2 attacking full-backs for width, 2 box-to-box midfielders and Osborn pulling strings off the front man.

I don't blame him for taking this long to find because the players also needed to take responsibility and he tried differing formations in that time too. Thank goodness we have found another system now without wingers because ours are sick notes or out of their depth at this stage.

 

[Matt]

Not all of them and questionable to think any of these 3 will make a major impact for us.

I think during the whole of pre-season , Montanier was formulating his plans and in the end after he scored 4 in pre-season (majority of our goals) he knew who he had to base his team around and it was him and then he continued it into the season proper and after Leeds we looked a major threat for promotion. Then he gets sold days before the window when Philippe believed he wouldn't be and probably was planning 1 more addition to add depth to wide areas.

Montanier was then back stabbed and with subsequent injuries to Britt/Bendtner and in that time we continued playing Osborn and Carayol/Dumitru out wide and it just didn't work. I also think the outlet of Burke worried any team trying to play front foot football on us because in seconds they would be turned over so we had more space from the back and in midfield.

Philippe was forced to come up with the a new source of goals and strengths to the squad and I think they believe they have found it. 2 attacking full-backs for width, 2 box-to-box midfielders and Osborn pulling strings off the front man.

I don't blame him for taking this long to find because the players also needed to take responsibility and he tried differing formations in that time too. Thank goodness we have found another system now without wingers because ours are sick notes or out of their depth at this stage.

Nail on head.

 

[Master Yates]

Not all of them and questionable to think any of these 3 will make a major impact for us.

I think during the whole of pre-season , Montanier was formulating his plans and in the end after he scored 4 in pre-season (majority of our goals) he knew who he had to base his team around and it was him and then he continued it into the season proper and after Leeds we looked a major threat for promotion. Then he gets sold days before the window when Philippe believed he wouldn't be and probably was planning 1 more addition to add depth to wide areas.

Montanier was then back stabbed and with subsequent injuries to Britt/Bendtner and in that time we continued playing Osborn and Carayol/Dumitru out wide and it just didn't work. I also think the outlet of Burke worried any team trying to play front foot football on us because in seconds they would be turned over so we had more space from the back and in midfield.

Philippe was forced to come up with the a new source of goals and strengths to the squad and I think they believe they have found it. 2 attacking full-backs for width, 2 box-to-box midfielders and Osborn pulling strings off the front man.

I don't blame him for taking this long to find because the players also needed to take responsibility and he tried differing formations in that time too. Thank goodness we have found another system now without wingers because ours are sick notes or out of their depth at this stage.

Yea, this, pretty much.

Top post.


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[stockers]

I think another question is how many of these players do we need considering we don't have any money.

I'd say Velios, that probably about it.. Nothing to say that bringing the youth players through sooner wouldn't have been a better bet. The real dissapointment for me has been Kasami (he's had his chance) and quite frankly he's a liability. If lam was brought in as a defender then that was a waste, Traore (well we all knew that), Dumi, Carayol, Lica were panick signings. Pereira is ok to bring off the bench and I don't mind Perquis but he has exactly been a rock. A lot of money wasted on wages and now we have a squad half full of dross again.

 

[ben_b]

Bit harsh on Lam. If Cohen hadnt got injured and we'd stuck with him at DM instead of Lam we'd have probably got 1-2 points instead of 6 the last two games.
Hopefully he can continue his good form, Bendtner should be a good signing in the long run too. The others are up for debate.

 

[Rzar]

Bit harsh on Lam. If Cohen hadnt got injured and we'd stuck with him at DM instead of Lam we'd have probably got 1-2 points instead of 6 the last two games.
Hopefully he can continue his good form, Bendtner should be a good signing in the long run too. The others are up for debate.

Don't think Lam has been our star player in the last two games, but he has definitely been the most important!

We look completely different with him holding.

 

[Rzar]

A lot of money wasted on wages and now we have a squad half full of dross again.

Has it though? The players we got aren't any worse than what we had, and are pretty much all on less money.

It was a cost cutting excersize and it was rarely going to make us a better side.

 

[MASE]

I think the fact Montanier has settled on a system promoting width from his full backs tells us all we need to know about Lica & Dmitru.

Carayol to a lesser extent, but he wont stay fit for long enough to build anything around.

Id say the rest have plenty of positives going for them.

 

[stockers]

Bit harsh on Lam. If Cohen hadnt got injured and we'd stuck with him at DM instead of Lam we'd have probably got 1-2 points instead of 6 the last two games.
Hopefully he can continue his good form, Bendtner should be a good signing in the long run too. The others are up for debate.

But he's been awful in defence, so if he was brought in as a defender then it was a waste.

 

[stockers]

Has it though? The players we got aren't any worse than what we had, and are pretty much all on less money.

It was a cost cutting excersize and it was rarely going to make us a better side.

Whether they are cheaper or not, if they don't play it's a waste of money..

 

[stockers]

Henderson
Traore
Kasami
Lica
Dumi

Complete and utter waste, if they are on £40000 a week between them (£2m a year) 60000 season tickets! Good business?

 

[Trickie Trees]

I think the fact Montanier has settled on a system promoting width from his full backs tells us all we need to know about Lica & Dmitru.

Carayol to a lesser extent, but he wont stay fit for long enough to build anything around.

Id say the rest have plenty of positives going for them.

Carayol has always had potential but he does appear somewhat biscuit like and never appears to push on wherever he's been.

 

[BryanRoy]

If you said to me, take a batch of senior players into next season - who would they be ?

Vlad
Lichaj
Pinillos
One of Mills/Mancienne
Perquis
Cohen (possibly keep him to back up Lam/Pinillos and slowly introduce the young players in those positions)
Lam
Lansbury
Osborn
Britt
Vellios
Bendtner

would be my answer

That means I don't care much for Henderson, Traore, Kasami, Dumi, Carayol & Lica out of the new signings.

Hildeberto says he is leaving in any case & can't fit him into either section. If things go well for the rest of the season I would probably love to put him in the first section if I could.

 

[MASE]

But he's been awful in defence, so if he was brought in as a defender then it was a waste.

Think he was brought in as a player comfortable on the ball & distributing it out of defence, dont necessarily think the fact he's settled better in the holding role makes him a waste.

Theres a good footballer there & he fits well into Montaniers ethos of play.

 

[Trickie Trees]

Think he was brought in as a player comfortable on the ball & distributing it out of defence, dont necessarily think the fact he's settled better in the holding role makes him a waste.

Theres a good footballer there & he fits well into Montaniers ethos of play.

I think he's perfect for the CDM role. Tall, can tackle and has good technical skills. Just needs to fill out a bit and mature in that position. We need to develop Anel for that role too.

 

[stockers]

I think he's perfect for the CDM role. Tall, can tackle and has good technical skills. Just needs to fill out a bit and mature in that position. We need to develop Anel for that role too.

Yep i don't think he's a bad player but the number of tackles i've seen him pull out of for someone who's supposed to be a defender is worrying. He needs to toughen up..

 

[Steve B]

It is too early to tell for a lot of these players - but my early report is:
Apostolos Vellios - hit - has delivered during a very difficult period for us. Has had to come in and go out and back in side but always puts in a decent performance, has scored different types of goals, has not been bossed about by defenders, technically good player and gets around a lot for a big fella.
Licá - undecided - thought he looked okay in the brief cameo he had, but just hasn't had the opportunities yet. I would have tried him ahead of Dumitru in some games but Phillipe sees them in training.
Thomas Lam - hit - I took a look at some of Lams old clubs games on you tube and what I thought then from the highlights had been born out. Struggled at CD with aerial duels, can get too easily shrugged off ball, but across the ground is quick to respond and is surprisingly mature and composed with ball at feet. Always looked a better player in a more advanced position. Phillipe has worked this out too now and we're seeing the rewards. Lot of people completely wrote him and ff when he that nightmare game and got sent off, but I'm pleased he's made them eat their words. Bright prospect (young fit Cohen potentially)
Stephen Henderson - miss - feel s but sorry for him but credit for turning it around and winning fans backing
Armand Traoré - miss - not been overly impressed so far, his availability is also disappointing.
Mustapha Carayol - undecided - we need to see more of him. Has looked anonymous in some early games, has been a flicker of his talent in some others, had a great game against Sheff W then disappeared again
Damien Perquis - hit - has had good commanding games and some mistake ridden games, but what I like about him is his attitude. When other defenders were sulking, crying, heads down, blaming others he stood out as the one positive force. It's a nightmare as a defender when your team can't stop conceding, especially when lots of them are other people's fault. Has been a leader at back despite the chaos around him.
Pajtim Kasami - indifferent - I think we all expected more from him. I do think he can improve. I like his passion, but there's been too much turnover of ball and hesitation from him in good possession. Can't do that in CM in England, has been the cause of a lot of our problems in some games. Would love him to drive on and start improving these basics and switch on a bit as he does have good technique.
Nicolao Dumitru - miss - hadn't had much game time and is starting to look a bit depressed. Didn't hit ground running, didn't grasp his opportunity when it came. Ran down blind alleys, gave ball away too easily. His last outing was by far his best performance though, so maybe some sign of improvement.
Hildeberto - hit - still love Hildo despite screwing up, he electrifies the crowd when gets the ball and god knows we need that.
Vladimir Stojkovic - hit - like his personality, made some mistakes, but also pulled off some absolute mind blowing reaction saves.
Nicklas Bendtner - undecided - simply hasn't had the minutes yet and will need a lot more time before we see the best of him. You can see his quality on the ball though in glimpses.

 

[JordanForest]

Henderson
Traore
Kasami
Lica
Dumi

Complete and utter waste, if they are on £40000 a week between them (£2m a year) 60000 season tickets! Good business?

You could get SKT Faker for that kind of money! Noone on here probably knows who he is though

 

[MaxiRobriguez]

Genuinely not sure what our fan base are expecting.

We were poor last season, with a large wage bill, under embargo. We went into this season with a lot of upheaval required, owner wanting out and no management team until late on in pre-season. For me the objective was to cut the wage bill whilst retaining our position as a mid-table side in the league and, man for man, I think we have a squad which is marginally better than it was last year primarily because we have Britt, Vellios and Bendtner which guarantees goals.

The wage bill is down, we're playing better football, we aren't going down this year. Progress, for the first time in a while.

But Dumitru is garbage.

 

[Alf-engelos Mindminackers]

Antonio, Burke & Olivera in the side at various times last year - fans happy to stay up.

Britt, Burke, Bendtner & Vellios in the side this year - fans happy to stay up.

Simon Cox leading the charge up top with Danny Colins & Dan Harding/Fox holding the backline for 2 seasons on the trot - fans fuming because we're not in the autos

Frightening that last year we had around £30m worth of talent in the side in Antonio, Burke & Olivera and still couldn't score. Not that it was anything to do with Dougie's approach, no.

 

[BryanRoy]

Do we think that any players will leave in January ?

Supposedly Montanier is keeping his eye on a player or two, to come in. But if I am perfectly honest I would only add another fast attacking threat and try off-load Lica and Dumitru. Only way to really advance our squad without bloating a position.

 

[Tobias]

Sign Bojan Jokic, move on Jack Hobbs for his own sake and loan out Jorge Grant for the rest of the season. Sell Mancienne / Lansbury if they aren't willing to sign new contracts.

 

[DizzyBala]

Do we think that any players will leave in January ?
Supposedly Montanier is keeping his eye on a player or two, to come in. But if I am perfectly honest I would only add another fast attacking threat and try off-load Lica and Dumitru. Only way to really advance our squad without bloating a position.

I think depending on where we are in the league come January, we might see Henri leave. Can't see him signing a new deal if we're not near the playoffs.
Someone would probably pay some money to get him six months early, particularly as he's been on form recently and if we got a decent amount and he's not gunna sign then we should cash in.

Mancienne for me is still our best central defender but it's not really happened for him this year with injuries and stuff. Wouldn't be overly fussed if he left though since he just seems off.
I don't see Osborn or Cash being allowed to leave unless it's for silly money since I'm sure the new owners will want us to at least have a go for the playoffs.

I'd like to see Dumitru and Kasami go back if they can. Lica is here permenantly so he'll stay. Villa fans aren't a fan of Gary Gardner and I don't think it's worked for him there.

Think we could do with a left back (I like Pinillos but how long is he gunna be gone? Traore is a crock and Fox is gash) and a proper defensive midfielder that's gunna put himself about for us.
That and with him coming back from injury, I'd love to see us try and sign Alan Judge from Brentford with the Burke money. Fantastic little creative player and he's fantastic at creating chances.

 

[BryanRoy]

Lansbury has said that he is close to signing his new contract ... but let's see.

If we get another left-back we will be sitting with 4 but we may have no choice ! No one will want Fox or Traore ever so we stuck with them.

Bartosz Kaputska is supposedly on our radar. Hopefully we can help Dumitru and Lica find new homes because I really think they have to for their own good.

Alan Judge has been injured all season so can't see that happening. Hopefully we carry on pushing for Kaputska.